UPDATE: Around 11:30 a.m., NJ Transit announced that service has resumed in both directions on the Northeast Corridor and North Jersey Coast lines and trains were operating on or close to schedule.

NJ Transit officials had feared a repeat of the 2011 Halloween ice storm that wreaked havoc on the rail system and knocked out service along 30 miles of track.

Those fears have been realized.

Service on the Northeast Corridor Line, America's busiest rail line, has been suspended in both directions between Trenton and New York due to heavy icing on the overhead electrical wires that power the trains. Service also was suspended on the North Jersey Coast Line, which runs from the Jersey Shore region to New York.

Elsewhere, riders on the the rail system were facing delays of up to a half-hour, with the exception of the Atlantic City Line.

NJ Transit also was reporting that bus service in North Jersey was subject to delays of up to an hour, Mercer County buses were subject to 45-minute delays and Hudson-Bergen Light Rail was having delays of up to 25 minutes. Just after 10:45 a.m., the delays on the North Jersey bus routes were reported to be down to 45 minutes.

John W. Nabial Sr. of West Windsor, who commutes from Princeton Junction to Manhattan, said his 6:42 a.m. train left Princeton Junction at 7:30 am and ran out of power about three miles out of the station.

In an email from his train at 8:08 a.m., he started to write that he was on the move again, before concluding it with, "Oops! Just lost power again."

Shortly after 8:15 a.m., a man at the Elizabeth Station platform said he had been waiting on the platform since 6 a.m.

"The platform is packed and people are getting pretty angry," said Richard Rosenzweig of Elizabeth, who was trying to get to his job in New York.

He took a photo of people packed like mackerels at the station.

Photo courtesy of Richard Rosenzweig

As it usually does during weather events or service impacts, NJ Transit has been
cross-honoring tickets for all modes of transportation to give commuters more riding options. Tickets can be used on trains, buses and light rail vehicles, regardless of which mode of transportation the ticket was for initially.

However, during this storm, NJ Transit tickets and passes also will be honored by private bus carriers and on PATH trains at Newark Penn Station, Hoboken Terminal and the 33rd Street station in Midtown Manhattan.

Rail platforms might be slippery, so NJ Transit is urging customers to stay behind the yellow lines and use caution when boarding trains.